


Accounts of Moments Passed

by JustAnotherWriter140



Category: Kung Fu Panda (Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Best Friends, Conversations, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Developing Friendships, Developing Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotions, F/M, Feelings Realization, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Late Night Conversations, Major Character Injury, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Possibly Unrequited Crush, Secret Crush, Snow, Stars, it's a little sad i guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:34:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27843076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAnotherWriter140/pseuds/JustAnotherWriter140
Summary: A collection of unheard tales; ones of friendship, love, and life.
Relationships: Crane & Monkey (Kung Fu Panda), Crane & Po (Kung Fu Panda), Crane & Viper (Kung Fu Panda), Li Shan & Po (Kung Fu Panda), Mantis & Monkey (Kung Fu Panda), Mantis & Po (Kung Fu Panda), Monkey & Po (Kung Fu Panda), Po & Tigress (Kung Fu Panda), Po & Viper (Kung Fu Panda), Po/Tigress (Kung Fu Panda)
Comments: 21
Kudos: 25





	1. They're Beyond Labels

**Author's Note:**

> First one-shot collection!
> 
> I thought that it was time for me to start a collection of drabbles/ficlets, since all of my fanfictions are super short anyway. I have a lot of short drafts that aren't long enough to be turned into a story worth reading, so I decided to group them up into a drabble collection.
> 
> (Also, everybody else seems to have a collection like this, so why should I hold back?)
> 
> There will most likely only be around 5-10 chapters, but I'll try my best to go over my estimated number.
> 
> I hope you enjoy! :D
> 
> POST-KFP3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a chilled December night...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written on December 22, 2019

“Po, can I ask you a question?” Tigress asked, her voice hardly a whisper.

“For sure.” Po nodded, a kind smile on his face.

“What are we?”

They’d been laughing just a minute ago; not a care in the world. Po wished he could go back to that moment and stay there forever. Snow fell around them, so lightly that it could go unnoticed. The winter breeze blew silently; chilly, but not enough to earn a shiver. The roof of the barracks was an exceptional place to see the stars. It was snowing, a flurry, but there was not a cloud to be seen. It was indeed a setting of romance; aiding to the now awkward silence that befell the two masters.

“We’re friends.” Po said, his voice wavering in uncertainty. He wasn’t really sure what she was asking.

“Are we?” Tigress questioned, somewhat loudly. Po understood now.

“Best friends.” He was trying to get out of the situation. He didn’t want to be asked this; not now. Not ever. It was too risky for them to talk about something like this.

“I feel like we’re more than that.....” Tigress trailed off. This conversation was inevitable, but she didn’t think that it’d be this hard to talk about. This was a friendship-ruining talk.

“Do we need a label?” Po asked after a long and anxious silence.

“What do we tell people when they ask, then?” Tigress questioned.

“We don’t have to tell them anything.” Po told Tigress, grabbing her hand. “They don’t have to know what we are.”

With a nervous breath, Tigress said, “I want to know what we are.”

“We’re Po and Tigress.” He paused. “And that’s all anyone, including us, ever needs to know. That’s all that matters. And guess what?”

She tore her gaze from their intertwined fingers, only to be met with his striking green eyes.

“I love you.”

_“I love you.” You said, and I waited for a “but...”_

_Instead came your arms and a “no matter what.”_

_-Unknown_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, it's not that good. It's pretty cringe in my opinion. However, in my defense, I wrote this a year ago. I like to think that I've improved a bit since then. :)


	2. Thought

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some people are more difficult to figure out than others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone! :D
> 
> I'm so excited to be posting chapter 2! I have found a new joy in life; writing drabbles. Short, sweet, and to the point.
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy the story! :D
> 
> POST-KFP2

She was hard to understand, to say the least.

Sometimes she was angry, irritable, and downright mean. Other times, however, she was calm, empathetic, and an overall great person.

Po’d resorted to comparing her emotions and moods to the time of day; it looked pretty simple on the outside.Day and night.

But there was so much more behind what she let on to the world. She almost seemed to censor the complexity of her personality, not allowing anyone to get close to her. Not allowing anyone to move past her tough exterior, which was usually painted over with anger.

Why?

Po didn’t know.

Chalking it up to her less than ideal childhood being the issue seemed like the most logical solution.

Correction; not a solution. That would imply that the problem were fixed, or had the potential to be fixed.

The best term for the dilemma didn’t really exist.

It irked Po a bit when he found that the five didn’t seem to be bothered by Tigress’ emotional distance. He couldn’t really comprehend how they were her friends and they cared about her, yet they still couldn’t see how far away Tigress really was from them.

He’d seen and experienced how affectionate and loving Tigress could be, and that opened a new door for him. Seeing more of her made her seem more and more like a real person, not just a perfect heroine of legend. She had flaws, and in the strangest of ways, that just made Po more attached to her.

Why?

Po didn’t know.

Maybe it was because opening up made her vulnerable. In that sense, it made her more relatable.

Po loved her, and that was a fact. In which way he loved her was still up for debate.

All he knew was that he wanted to hear more.

He wanted to listen to her beautiful voice talk about herself. He wanted to hear her hopes, dreams, and aspirations in life. What she thought of things, how she perceived the world, the ways that she coped with being an orphan; Po was willing to hear anything and everything about her.

If only she’d open up.

He wanted for her to trust him in the way he trusted her, and more than anything, he wanted to at least try to repay her for talking to him in Gongmen City. For being his friend and spending time with him, talking him through his inner demons that he thought he’d never overcome.

She was strong where he wasn’t.

All he wanted was to be that for her.

He longed to be the wind beneath her wings, the one who would catch her if she fell.

However, there was only one way that he could be there for her; if she allowed him to be.

Yes, it would take time, hard work, patience, and more patience.

Lucky for her, he was persistent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a holiday-themed fic coming out within the next two-three weeks in addition to this collection, so that should be fun. I love writing for anyone who happens to come across my account, even if I do stay up into the early hours of the morning to finish my works. :)
> 
> I wrote this a month ago, and I'd originally intended it to be longer, but I couldn't think of any ways to do that. So, I thought that it'd make a nice addition to this new series.
> 
> You are all beyond awesome, and I hope that you have an amazing day! :D


	3. Worth It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Li and Po have a conversation about Tigress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a longer drabble, which I now realize is kind of a parallel to one of my previous works, Common Ground, in which Li talks to Tigress about Po.
> 
> I didn't plan that, but nevertheless, please enjoy! :D
> 
> POST-KFP3

The thought had been plaguing his mind for some time now.

It was like the sound of a waterfall. Constant, never-ending; it was always there. Even if it wasn’t always being focused on, it was still hovering in the background. Despite this, it was somehow pleasant all the same. It was almost calming in a way.

Yet it was all strange to Li.

Yes, he enjoyed watching his son and Tigress interact, but he couldn’t understand why.

Could it be the way one either slows or quickens to match the pace of the other when they walk side-by-side?

Yes.

Was it the way they radiated happiness when together?

Yes.

The way they literally turned heads?

Of course.

It was all of these things, but at the same time it was none of them.

A small smile grew on Li’s face as he watched the panda village from his hut. This was once the highlight of his day. Watching the humble village from a distance, Li used to feel fully at peace. He’d watched the people below every night for the past twenty years, and had everyone’s nightly routine memorized completely.

He still enjoyed it, yes, but he had a son. A son that he now was lucky enough to see everyday. A son whose eyes he could look into and see his wife; his beloved wife. The one that he’d thought that he’d completely lost years ago.

“Dad,” The sweet sound of his son’s voice broke the silence of the scene.

“Little Lotus!” Li exclaimed, a wide smile exploding across his face. He lifted himself off of the wooden deck with a grunt, and he turned to look at Po, who was standing only a few feet behind him. Li was suddenly laughing as he wrapped his arms around his son. Po reciprocated the hug, but not as enthusiastically as he usually did. Li immediately pulled away from his son, holding him by the shoulders. “Lotus, are you alright?”

“What?” Po muttered. His eyes were fixed on something in the distance. Li turned, following Po’s line of vision until he saw what he was looking at; who he was looking at.

“Ah,” Li nodded slowly and exaggeratedly, a knowing smile on his face. He, too, was now observing the vibrant mass of gold and orange walking through the panda village, a much smaller dot of black and white skipping ahead of her.

“Dad, c’mon, it’s not like that,” Po groaned, a light pink coloration apparent on his cheeks.

Li only laughed at his son, patting a now flustered Po on the back. “You know, son, it’s alright to have a crush on someone, you don’t have to be ashamed of it.”

“I don’t have a crush on her!” Po exclaimed incredulously. “I just…happened to look her way, that’s all!”

“Lotus, I know that phrase.” Li chuckled, wrapping an arm around Po’s shoulders. “I invented that phrase.” With his other hand, he gave his son a pat on the chest before returning to his former position; leaning against his balcony, staring out at the pandas and the mountains. “So, on that note,” He patted a spot on the deck beside him. “Wanna talk about it?” He asked, not taking his gaze off of the village below.

Po sighed heavily, and reluctantly accepted that lying to his father was pointless. Dads just know things sometimes, he supposed. Sitting down beside Li, Po’s green eyes once again found Tigress, and a small smile of fondness spread across his face. “She’s really good with Lei Lei.” He commented quietly, looking to Li.

“Such a precious little thing,” Li remarked, watching the baby panda joyously run circles around Tigress, who was looking a little confused. “Her mother passed about a year ago.” The smile was immediately gone from Po’s face, and his heart sank as he looked back to Tigress and Lei Lei, who were now sitting down in a patch of grass. “Her mom was a good friend of mine. Always wore orange.” Li added the last part in a forced chuckle, probably to keep himself from getting too emotional, Po figured.

“So that’s why she loves Tigress so much.” Po whispered, and Li only gave a nod in response.

“What’s your reason then?” Li asked, causing Po to sigh again.

“I don’t even know if I love her, Dad,” Po confessed, rubbing his face with his hands in exasperation. “I mean, I do, but…I’m so confused. I’ve been so confused for so long and I’m sick of it.”

“Well, how do you feel when you’re with her?” Li asked softly. He knew how hard being in this type of situation could be.

Po seemed to think for a moment, his gaze still lingering on the tiger below. “When I’m with Tigress, Dad, it almost feels like everything makes sense; but somehow, at the same time, nothing makes sense?” Letting his gaze drift to the snowy mountains, whose gray and white colors were accompanied by the crimson and magenta hue of the sunset, Po continued, “I can’t put what I feel when she walks into a room into words,” He paused. “And that scares the heck out of me.”

“Lotus, I think I understand,” Li said, placing a hand of reassurance onto his son’s shoulder. “I think that you’re more afraid of loving that girl than losing her.” Po’s eyes suddenly went wide as he stared at his father, a dumbfounded expression on his face. Li continued, “And you’re afraid to love her because you don’t want to let all of your walls down. But son, you have to understand that love is not a weakness. It’s a strength. It’s sure as heck stronger than Kung Fu.” He chuckled lightly. “It will be your best ally in life. And even during all of its ups and downs, it’s always worth it in the end.”

So that was why he loved watching his son and Tigress being together.

They were in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really sure why I wrote this, but oh well. It's not my best work, but I had fun, so that's good! :)
> 
> Requests are open! Leave your ideas and prompts in the comments, I'd love to hear them! If you don't have any suggestions, how was the fic?
> 
> Have an awesome day everybody, you're all amazing! :D


	4. Past Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Po shares his past feelings about Tigress with the five, but after some listening, they begin to suspect that Po's feelings aren't as far behind him as he thought; if they're even behind him at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a bit since I've updated this collection, so I apologize for that. This idea came to me a while back, and I completely forgot about it.
> 
> Enjoy the drabble! :D
> 
> POST-KFP3

“I’m pretty sure you guys know everything about me,” Po admitted, taking a seat at the wooden kitchen table. He folded his arms on the surface of the wood, leaning forward slightly. He’d just finished putting away stray dishes and was now sitting in the kitchen with Crane, Viper, Monkey, and Mantis. They’d been talking about things that they hadn’t known about each other, and it was his turn to share something. Tigress was absent from the scene on account of her evening patrol. As everyone waited anxiously for Po’s answer, he chuckled. “Seriously, I can’t think of anything.”

“Well that’s disappointing.” Mantis muttered from where he was perched on Crane’s straw hat. Viper briefly glared at him, her blue eyes shooting him a warning and borderline motherly look; as if he were a child who’d done something he wasn’t supposed to. “Sorry, but everybody else has said something so far.”

“Po, if it’d make you more comfortable, I could share a few other things.” Viper offered. It wasn’t like she had many other secrets from her friends, but she supposed that if it were delivered correctly, she could make some boring things that’d happened to her over the years sound interesting.

“Actually, I have something!” Po suddenly exclaimed, causing everyone to look at him expectantly. Monkey and Mantis looked especially invested. “I used to have a major crush on Tigress.”

The kitchen’s light and happy atmosphere turned into a silent and somewhat dark one within a second. One phrase stopped everyone in their tracks, and their faces that just a moment ago had shown happiness and intrigue now showed pure confusion. They were truly at a loss for words, and an explanation was needed as soon as possible. Despite the now awkward tension in the air, Monkey and Mantis were desperately trying to hold back laughter while Crane’s beak simply dropped open in disbelief.

“Excuse me, what?” Viper asked, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible. Despite her apparent disbelief, Po’s feelings, whether they still existed or not, for Tigress had always been obvious to her. She was a woman, after all. What surprised her was his willingness and confidence in saying it out loud.

“Yeah.” Po nodded, looking around at his friends. “I know, I hid it pretty well, right?” There was an almost undetectable hint of sarcasm in his tone.

“Knew it.” Monkey muttered under his breath, sending a glance of smug victory to Mantis, who only rolled his eyes in response. “I believe someone owes me a certain amount of cash, what say you, Mantis?”

“Wait, you guys were betting?” Po looked to both Monkey and Mantis, who only shrugged.

“When were you planning on telling us, exactly?” Crane questioned urgently, finally snapping out of his state of shock.

“Truth be told, I wasn’t planning on telling anyone. Like, ever. My dads don’t even know.”

“Then why would you tell us?” Viper asked, her vision switching between Po, who was smiling as if he’d said nothing out of the ordinary, and Monkey and Mantis, who’d been silently staring at Po since he’d admitted to having a crush on one of their best friends.

“Because it was a long time ago.” Po stated slightly incredulously. “Why are you guys acting so weird all of a sudden?”

“What qualifies as a long time ago in your book?” Crane inquired, completely ignoring Po’s second question. “Because for one person, a long time ago is a week, and for another, a long time ago is a year.”

“I can assure you, it’s been over a week.” Po said through a light laugh.

Snickering, Monkey joked, “Has it been over two?”

“Yes,” Po answered; and with much more hesitation than what the five were expecting.

“Three?” Mantis added, causing Po to sigh in exasperation.

As a light pink blush began to make itself known on his face, Po groaned, “Guys, c’mon-“

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Viper whispered, her voice empathetic and patient.

“What was I supposed to say?” Po replied. “There was no way I was gonna risk losing what I have with her. Especially over some insignificant feelings that I had towards her when we first met; it was just the fan in me.”

“Insignificant?” Viper questioned softly. “Po…”

“I’m not saying that what I feel- felt towards her was insignificant, I’m just trying to emphasize that it was a simple fanboy crush and I’m over it.”

“Are you?” Mantis remarked, leaping from Crane’s hat to the table.

“Yes?”

“Is that a question or an answer?”

“I feel like I shouldn’t be here,” Crane muttered to Viper, observing Mantis interrogating Po.

“An answer?”

“Dude!”

“Enough!” The kitchen suddenly went silent as Viper abruptly interrupted them with uncharacteristic loudness. The room became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. With a sigh, Viper looked at each of her friends. “Guys, Po felt comfortable enough to share this very private piece of information with us, so we should take it easy on him.” She said, sending a warning glare in Monkey and Mantis’ direction.

“It’s fine, Viper, they’re just joking around. But seriously guys, if I were still crushing on her, do you think that I would’ve told you?” Po looked to Monkey, Mantis, and Crane.

“Maybe to throw us off your trail.” Mantis muttered, looking at Po in thought. “Sorry buddy, but you’re being really suspicious right now.”

“How? It was five months ago!” Po exclaimed incredulously.

“That’s interesting.” Monkey commented. When Po gave him a questioning glance from across the table, he chuckled a bit. “My mother once told me that someone can only have a crush on another person for around four months before it turns into love.”

“That is interesting.” Po commented in a monotone voice; he was clearly not amused.

“Monkey, there aren’t any rules, especially not time-based, in determining the difference between a crush and being in love. That should only be decided by the person feeling those feelings. It’s Po’s call.” Viper smiled sweetly at Po, who leaned back in his seat.

“Alright, I’m gonna head out,” The panda stated, standing up abruptly, the bottoms of his chair legs skidding across the floor briefly. Nobody tried to stop him as he silently left the kitchen, turning right as he did so. He was leaving the barracks completely. Where he was going, the five had no idea; most likely to his father’s noodle shop. However, there was also a chance of him joining Tigress on her patrol. He tended to do that if there were either a reason for concern or if he simply missed her company. His reasoning for joining her was often the ladder.

Viper sighed, disappointed in not only Monkey and Mantis’ behavior, but in her own as well. She could’ve tried harder to make the guys, save for Crane, leave Po alone. Crane noted his friend’s saddened expression, saying, “We kind of betrayed his trust, huh?”

The snake only nodded in response. Mantis looked at Crane, then Viper, then Monkey, and sighed. “Seriously? Not to sound insensitive or anything, but he kind of had it coming anyway.” When all of his friends stared at the insect in sheer surprise, Mantis added, “Monkey and I already teased him about Tigress, we always have; in good fun, of course. Him confirming our theory doesn’t favor him in the slightest, if anything, it’s a disadvantage. I honestly don’t know why he told us.”

“I actually kind of agree with Mantis,” Monkey remarked. “No offense to Po, obviously, but it was a pretty dumb move to tell us about it. We’d certainly never think of telling Tigress, because who knows how she’d react, but I’m just wondering why he’d do that. We weren’t really pressing that hard for it.”

“Maybe he thought it was obvious.” Crane thought aloud, earning strange glances from his peers. “I don’t know, maybe he thought that we knew and pitied him, so he decided to tell us in full confidence; you know, as to seem completely over the whole thing.”

After a moment of thought, Viper said, “That…actually makes sense.”

“So you’re saying he’s not?” Mantis clarified. “Over her, that is.”

“He’s not.” Monkey stated. “I’m sure of that.”

“Are you an expert on this topic?” Viper asked sarcastically.

“I don’t have to be.” The simian replied, a slightly smug expression on his face. “Just watch the way he is with her. It’s so unbelievably obvious, how have you guys not noticed it?”

“Of course I noticed it,” Viper admitted quietly, a small, happy smile quickly dashing across her face.

When Crane looked slightly confused, Monkey added, “You know, the way that whenever somebody tells a joke, he looks at her first to see if she’s laughing? The way that she’s able to grab his full, undivided attention by simply saying his name? Ring a bell?”

“Your significant other should always be your best friend.” Viper commented with a nod. She and Monkey were now staring at a very confused Crane.

“It’s really none of my business.” Crane muttered. “I’ll take your word for it.”

Viper scoffed, though her smile never left her face. Monkey rolled his eyes, shaking his head, a small smirk apparent on his features. Mantis was simply nodding in agreement; it seemed as if Crane were the only one who hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. He didn’t consider himself dense by any means, and he had the reputation around the palace of being quite intelligent. Maybe, he thought, his intelligence was limited to battle tactics and some basic common sense. Some mathematics could possibly be thrown into the mix as well. However, with other peoples’ feelings, he seemed to be completely clueless.

And seeing as how Tigress’d never mentioned anything regarding Po’s romantic feelings to anyone, at least as far as he knew, he supposed that the tiger shared this disadvantage with him; if what Viper and Monkey were saying was the truth, then it would not end very well for Po nor Tigress.

He hoped with every fiber of his being that Po and Tigress stayed out until the rest of the five were asleep; for the panda and tiger’s sake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, this is super cliché and really shallow and all of that. I try to make my stories as thought-provoking and interesting as I can, but I kinda just wanted to have some fun with some good old meaningless friendly banter and fluff. I also wanted to work on Po's interactions with the rest of the five, so it's a win-win.
> 
> I debated on whether to post this or not because I couldn't really see it happening. I try to only write things that I could clearly visualize happening in a movie or short film. Maybe I'm the only one who does that, I don't know.
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading! :D
> 
> Sorry for the delayed posting, by the way, I had to give my dog (lemon beagle) a bath. She says hi though.


	5. Healing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not all injuries are physical, and unfortunately for the masters of the Jade Palace, emotional wounds tend to have a much longer recovery time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! It’s been a bit since I’ve posted, and for that I apologize. I’ve come down with a bad case of writer’s block recently, and I’ve been having a lot of trouble in coming up with story ideas. Because of this, I decided to write a quick drabble featuring everyone’s trip home from Gongmen City. Yes, it’s been done multiple times before, but I figured that I’d release my version on how I see part of the journey going.
> 
> Enjoy! :)
> 
> POST-KFP2

“Po,”

The sound of her smooth voice filled the cool night air, speaking his name with delicate affection. Ever since the terrifying moment in which he feared that he’d never hear the sweet sound again, he’d quickly grown to savor each and every word that was spoken by her.

A beat of silence ensued. Po sat unmoving on the wooden deck of the boat, his back leaning heavily against the mast, and Tigress stood in front of the thin curtain that separated the cabin area of the boat from the deck.

“Po.”

She repeated herself; however, her tone held no hint of exasperation or irritancy as it usually did when she was forced to tell him something more than once. Po still said nothing, simply listening to the sounds of the river’s cold water slapping against the sides of the boat as the boat glided effortlessly across the surface. He heard one of the wooden planks behind him creak, signaling Tigress’ movement.

“Po, please answer me.”

She’d said it in a tone that made it sound more like an order than a request. When Po once again remained silent, Tigress took it upon herself to find out what was troubling him; aside from the near death experiences partnered with extreme trauma. It made her heart ache slightly in knowing that what she’d been present for wasn’t all that Po’d endured. He still hadn’t spoken a word about where he’d been until he appeared on that rooftop in the city, or how he’d mastered inner peace so unbelievably quickly; to the extent of harnessing the energy of fireworks, no less.

Seating herself in a lotus position to the right of the panda, Tigress looked out over the river that was blackened by nightfall. Upon glancing at Po’s face, Tigress felt a sense of unease rise in her chest. His emerald eyes, previously glowing with enthusiasm and happiness, were now empty and unfocused, his vision seemingly cast into the distance. Tigress found it highly disturbing.

“Say something.” Tigress raised her voice slightly, trying to ignore the unnerving nature that Po’s blank expression held.

“What do you want me to say?” Po replied, his voice low and husky. She assumed that he’d been crying, or close to it at the very least.

“Something.” Tigress stated, a slight hint of urgency in her tone. “Please.”

Another painful moment of silence followed, though it was filled with significantly more dread than the last one.

“I want to,” Po finally said, taking his eyes off of the faraway mountains for the first time since Tigress’d come outside. He looked to Tigress, who was still sitting beside him in a lotus position. “I do. I’m just not ready yet.” He gave her a small smile, unknowingly giving Tigress an astronomical amount of peace of mind. “I promise, though, that you’ll be the first one I talk to.”

“I don’t have to be,” Tigress commented. “If you’d feel more comfortable in talking to your father, I fully understand.”

“I want you to be.” Po said quietly. “I only want you.” Upon realizing how out of context that sentence could be taken, Po began to chuckle nervously. A dark crimson blush blossomed onto his cheeks as he shifted uncomfortably. Tigress simply stared at the panda, her eyebrows raised. “I definitely could’ve worded that better,”

“Definitely.” Tigress agreed, nodding.

“It’s just…” Po paused momentarily, pondering on how to put his thoughts into words as diplomatically as possible. “I love my dad, but I don’t think he’d understand. He’d have no way to, you know? He wasn’t adopted, he knows who his parents were…” Giving Tigress another grin, Po playfully punched Tigress’ shoulder; much lighter than he’d done previously. A hint of a smile showed itself on her face in response. “You and I have more in common.”

“I’m honored.” Tigress said after a moment.

Po only lightly chuckled at Tigress’ formalness. He hoped that she’d grow accustomed to being more casual around him, but things like this take time, he supposed. Their deep conversations that reached into the dark depths of the night seemed to be helping their relationship to grow and change by a significant amount.

“You can go back inside if you want,” Po remarked, observing the dark water and the ironwood trees that grew near the river banks. “It’s getting kind of cold.”

Tigress followed Po’s line of vision, focusing on the ironwood trees in the distance. She found herself staring at the painfully familiar thin trunks and dried out leaves. They seemed to have a bluish glow in the night; just as the ones at the Jade Palace had as her teenage self punched the stone-like wood over and over, each strike growing more and more painful.

Until they weren’t, of course.

“I’ll manage.” Tigress muttered. She moved backward slightly, copying Po’s position. Relaxing against the mast, Tigress took in a deep breath, inhaling the cold air of the night.

Once everyone arrived at the Jade Palace, Tigress was almost certain that they’d all need some time to deal with the recent events. They’d all come to terms with what happened in varying amounts of time with different coping mechanisms, some healthier than others. Once Po’d defeated Shen, Tigress’d thought that she’d never recover from the trauma; though as she sat in quiet darkness with Po, her friend, staring out over the peaceful river, she felt a little bit of the dreadful and guilty weight left by the horrors of Gongmen rising from her shoulders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that you all enjoyed it! I’m really liking writing these drabbles for you guys!
> 
> Sorry for the shortness of this addition to the collection, but I’ve been really busy for the past week and I just couldn’t get around to it. I’m not going to promise a more frequent posting schedule, but I will promise that I’ll get a new story out within the next two weeks.
> 
> Requests for drabbles are always welcome! If you want to, you can PM me an idea or leave it in the reviews! Speaking of reviews, I love to receive any kind of feedback on my work. If I need to improve upon some of my skills, please let me know. I won’t get offended, I promise. :)
> 
> With all of that said, have an amazing day! :D


	6. Conversations and Closure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Po reveals his true thoughts about his biological father to Tigress.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The following one-shot is based on a request that I received on my last chapter. Smiley, thank you so much for the request! I’ll try my best to exceed your expectations! I love the idea and I’m super excited to write a work for it.
> 
> Enjoy everybody! :)
> 
> POST-KFP3

Po placed the plate that he’d been wiping clean of its leftover food onto the pile of clean dishes. He and Tigress’d been assigned to do the dishwashing that night, much to both of their dismay. They welcomed the quality time that the chore brought on its shoulders, but retrieving the washbasin from the shed was enough of a hassle; filling the overly big trough with water was beyond irritating. On top of all of that, the job would usually take a fairly large amount of time, often reaching into the late hours of the night.

This night was no different.

Po and Tigress were positioned facing away from the barracks, the golden tinted light pressing against their backs, shadows caressing their faces and the front side of their bodies. Tigress was standing to Po’s right. They were cleaning the dishes in complete silence, both unsure on how to initiate a conversation. After defeating a villain, it usually took everyone a bit of time to fall back into the groove of their lives before the encounter. Tigress supposed that things weren’t much different than what they’d been like after facing Shen, but she wasn’t exactly desensitized to Po being uncharacteristically quiet for a few weeks after returning home.

“So, how are you?” Tigress suddenly asked, reaching for another dirty plate with her right hand. She kept her eyes on Po, absentmindedly beginning to rub the dish with the wet cloth in her left hand.

“That depends.” Po replied, submerging a bowl in the washbasin, watching air bubbles lick the curves of the piece of pottery as it went under. Grabbing a wet piece of fabric from the edge of the washbasin, he said, “If we’re talking about the Jade Palace being destroyed, then I guess I’m fine…I mean, yeah, it’s upsetting, but nobody was hurt. Besides, we didn’t really use it that much.” Looking up from the dish, Po scanned the tree line as he continued to ramble. “Of course, we do have to take into account that Oogway’s writings were all destroyed as well; and we have no idea what was in most of those...and all of those priceless artifacts…and Oogway’s statue…but it’s fine! It’ll be fine, though, because we can rebuild.” Another thoughtful pause ensued, and Po sighed lightly, turning his attention back to the bowl that he was cleaning. “Or if you were talking about me taking Kai to the Spirit Realm, then-“

“Po,” Tigress suddenly grabbed Po’s right wrist with her left hand, squeezing it gently. “I was referring to your biological father.”

“You mean how I finally made peace with the fact that I was the only panda left in China after years of questioning my identity, only for my biological father to appear out of thin air, making me question who I was more than ever?” Tigress nodded. “I’m…not so fine…”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Tigress asked, placing the plate that she was washing on the pile of clean dishes.

“I’m a little frustrated, if I’m being honest.” Po admitted, trying his best to focus on cleaning the bowl. He could feel Tigress’ flaming eyes boring into the side of his neck, though her gaze didn’t radiate anger; her eyes were soft and sympathetic, full of concern. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but I felt like I had everything figured out, if that makes sense. I knew about my past, I knew where I came from, I knew who I was…” He took a deep breath, and he felt Tigress’ grip on his wrist tighten slightly. A light smile dashed across his face at the action, but it was gone as quickly as it’d appeared. “And then he comes along out of nowhere, essentially telling me that I’m not who I’m meant to be. I love him, I do, but he made me question who I was again.” He added, “Not to mention that he took me away from the palace; away from you…and look where that got us.” Shrugging his left shoulder toward the ruinous Jade Palace, Po sighed shortly.

“Do you wish that you’d never met him?” Tigress asked, her voice close to a whisper. She unconsciously moved a step closer to her best friend; he was now holding every ounce of her attention.

After a moment of thought, Po said, “No…some part of me would still wonder,” He turned to Tigress, his green eyes glowing dimly in the golden glow that radiated from the barracks. The right side of his face, now exposed to the brightness of the building, appeared to be a faint yellow color in the lantern’s light. The two were now facing each other, half of each of their faces and bodies engulfed in the golden shine of the barracks. “It’s great to know that he’s alive and well, you know? I think that knowing that he’s okay is the thing I’m most grateful for,” He stopped himself from stating the obvious; Tigress, unfortunately, hadn’t yet been given that kind of closure. Part of him doubted that she ever would, but he often chose to ignore it.

Giving Po’s wrist a final squeeze, Tigress let go and resumed her previous task, grabbing another dirty plate. Attempting to make the scene lighter, Tigress asked, “Did anything surprise you when you met him?”

“Yeah, actually,” Po said through a sudden laugh, returning to washing the bowl. Tigress found herself smiling at the sound. “I was, and still am, really surprised at how intent he is on me getting married.” When Tigress raised her eyebrows, Po chuckled lightly. “He isn’t that annoying about it, but he’ll drop little hints all over the place. He’s also tried to set me up on multiple occasions.”

“Really,” She’d said it in a way that’d made it sound less like a question and more like a statement.

“I turned them all down, of course,” Po added.

“Saving yourself for someone?” Tigress questioned. Her tone was unreadable. The question itself would usually be asked as a joke, but her voice remained monotone. Po’d found that Tigress was a master of deadpan humor, but her jokes were few and far between. Tigress was expecting Po to reply with some sort of snappy comeback, trying to get the upper hand in the situation. She was greatly confused when he gave her no response. A moment of painfully awkward silence ensued, with Tigress observing Po, who’d turned his attention back to the remaining dirty dishes.

“I can do the rest of these by myself.” Po commented, gesturing to the remainder of the dishes with his left hand. “You seem kinda tired.” He added, wrapping his right arm loosely around his best friend, his hand resting just above her right elbow, with his thumb absentmindedly drawing circles on her arm as he did so. Tigress fought the urge to smile, though knew that she lost the battle when Po said, “I’m right, aren’t I?”

“Sure.” Tigress said through a laugh, a hint of sarcasm in her tone. “There are only a few left, though, and you’ll certainly need my help when it’s time to put this thing away.” She gestured to the washbasin with her left hand, a small smirk apparent on her face.

“Fine.” Po shrugged, simultaneously removing his hand from Tigress’ arm. “Whatever you want.”

Tigress hummed in response, placing a now clean plate onto the ever-growing pile of clean dishes. “In that case, I’ll stay out here.”

“Perfect.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was fast, huh? I probably won't be able to write something for every request that I receive as fast as I did with this one, but it was my first ever request and I got really excited about it. So excited, in fact, that it was finished within hours of receiving the review. I refrained from posting it, though, because I wanted to space out my posting dates a little bit.
> 
> Speaking of requests, feel free to PM me or leave one in the reviews/comments!
> 
> I hope that y’all enjoyed and have an awesome day! :)


	7. Stay Alive For Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The following one-shot is based on a request that I received on Healing. Phoebeb96, I cannot thank you enough for this amazing request! Fair warning, though, there’s a lot of angst in this chapter. A lot. And I know that it directly contradicts what you had in mind for this one-shot, but I promise you; there will be fluff. It’s towards the end, yes, but there will be fluff. I’m beyond excited to write this.
> 
> Before you all start reading, though, I’d like to clear something up; this one-shot is an AU based on a series of sketches that can be found in the Kung Fu Panda 3 art book. The sketches portray Tigress being injured, Po scaling a cliff with her over his shoulder, bringing her to the panda village, and Tigress recovering in what I assume to be the infirmary. (I change minor details to fit what I have in mind for the story, but they don’t stray far from the sketches much; if at all.)
> 
> With that said, please enjoy! :)
> 
> DURING-KFP3

It’d happened in a second; there was no way that he could’ve done anything to prevent what’d just occurred.

However, in his eyes, the blame could fall on nobody but himself. He hadn’t been watching; he hadn’t been paying close enough attention to their surroundings.

As a result of his foolishness, Master Tigress; his colleague, his best friend, and so much more was draped over his left shoulder in an unconscious, unmoving state. Her body was sickeningly limp against his, her breathing disturbingly shallow. She’d been hit by one of the jombies’ darts; of what kind, Po wasn’t sure. His mind had been a panicky mess since he was forced to witness her cry of pain, accompanied by her promptly collapsing. He’d gotten to her in just enough time in order to keep her head from hitting the ground.

He couldn’t remember much from the incident; it’d all turned into a horrifying blur of frantically shouting her name as Tigress fell into a sleep state, succumbing to the wrath of whatever poison had been in that dart. Before Po knew it, he was scaling the side of a mountain; one arm wrapped around Tigress’ slim waist, and the other clutching any ledge it could grab hold of for dear life. His muscles burning, he’d continued to pull himself and Tigress towards the peak of the mountain; his only motivation being the eventual confirmation of her safety. The mountain wind was numbing and merciless, slicing sharply through his thick fur; the thin air didn’t help much, either.

Once he’d reached the top of the mountain, he’d begun to call for help. Li’d come running at the sound of his son’s frightened voice, nearly gasping at the sight. Po’d still had his left arm wrapped around Tigress’ waist, while the other had fallen to his side. Tigress’s head was resting in the crook of Po’s neck, her right arm slung over his shoulders. Upon noticing that the tiger was unmoving, Li’d motioned for his son to follow him, and Po’d quickly obliged. Bending down, Po’d hooked his arm underneath Tigress’ knees, simultaneously letting out a breath that he didn’t know he was holding in. Carrying his best friend in a form that directly resembled bridal-style, Po’d watched as Tigress’ head laid limply against his chest. With a heavy heart, Po’d followed his father to the medical ward, an injured Tigress in his arms.

“Lotus?” Li’s speech pierced the dreadful silence of the scene, his voice quiet and solemn.

Po couldn’t exactly blame his father for being concerned for his mental health; Po hadn’t left Tigress’ bedside since she’d been placed into the medical ward. He’d been extremely enthusiastic at first, telling the unconscious tiger about his trip to the panda village, the new food that he’d tried, and his long-lost cousins and relatives. As the hours droned on, however, the previously optimistic panda began to become overwhelmed with worry, so much so that it was impossible to continue to fake being hopeful. Even as he continued to drain himself of his energy, he still refused to even step outside. Lei Lei’d wandered into the ward a few times to keep him company, but she’d only ever stayed for a few minutes at a time.

“Yeah?” Po practically groaned, his voice rough; most likely from the lack of sleep. He was kneeling on the stone flooring, holding Tigress’ right hand with both of his, with his forehead resting on the back of her hand. Raising his head, he glanced at his biological father with unnervingly exhausted and hollow eyes.

“Son, I hate to see you like this,” Li told Po, who only blinked in response. Approaching the bedridden tiger and Po, Li rested his left hand on his son’s right shoulder, shaking it slightly. “Come outside. She’ll be fine, I promise. There’s a nurse in the next room over, she’ll be close by if anything happens.”

“But what if I’m not here?” Po questioned, looking back to Tigress. “Dad, I need to be here if she wakes up!”

“Lotus, please, you’re exhausted!” Li countered, his grip on his son’s shoulder tightening slightly. “You have bags under your eyes, for heaven’s sake! The sun’s about to rise; you’ve been here for nearly two days!”

“She wouldn’t leave me.” Po responded quietly, his gaze still locked onto his best friend. His jade eyes glistening with oncoming tears, Po huskily whispered, “I’m not going anywhere.”

He made no movement as Li took his hand off of his shoulder, and Po listened to his biological father sigh and walk away, opening the medical ward’s door and closing it behind himself. Letting out a shaky sigh, Po rested his forehead back onto the back of Tigress’ hand. A few seconds later, he lifted his head slightly, placing a light kiss on her vibrant orange fur. He began to lower his head once more, but a golden ray of sunlight caught his attention. The light peeked through the spaces in between the wooden planks of the medical ward’s door, casting vertical, pillar-like strands of light into the room.

“The sunrises around here are gorgeous,” Po remarked, observing the faint shapes that the dim light made. The sunlight was weak, but it would grow stronger within a few minutes. “Maybe we can watch one when you wake up, huh?” He saddened slightly when he received no answer, though it wasn’t like he were expecting one by any means.

He supposed that Tigress could’ve already witnessed one of the local sunrises; not from the perspective of the panda village, of course, but Po wasn’t sure how long she’d been in the village in which he’d found her. Mere moments before she’d been hit with the dart, the two’d reunited in an alleyway located in a nearby village. Po’d originally thought that she were a threat, however, upon taking a moment to observe the person who’d pulled him into an alley from behind, he’d immediately recognized them as Tigress.

They’d both questioned what the other was doing, and when Po told the tiger that he was gathering supplies in the village for his goose father, who’d somehow managed to sneak himself along on the pandas’ journey, Tigress revealed that the Jade Palace’d been destroyed; in addition to the more than devastating news, she also solemnly informed Po of their friends and master being turned into Kai’s jade minions, their life force ruthlessly stolen from them.

The two’d been walking through the village’s main street, which’d seemed to be decorated for some sort of festival. The two masters had become even more confused as they began to hear loud popping noises; confetti cannons. As the colorful strips of rice-paper began to fall through the air, both Po and Tigress exhibited a brief sense of happiness; the contentment was unfortunately short-lived, however, when Po’d heard a yelp of pain from Tigress. He’d whipped his head around to see one of Kai’s jombies sprinting away, and Tigress standing still for a brief moment before beginning to fall backward.

Po shook his head, trying to shake the fear and guilt out of his mind. “They were aiming for me,” He muttered. “They were aiming for me, but they hit you. This is my fault, Tigress, I’m sorry.” He’d apologized a countless number of times since Tigress’d been placed into the medical ward, but it never felt like enough. Words would never be able to repay what’d happened, at least not in his mind. “I’m so sorry.” He repeated, his voice dropping to a whisper. She remained unmoving, the only indication that she was alive was the steady rising and falling of her chest.

Upon glancing at the wooden door again, Po was forced to squint as the golden light hit his eyes; the sun was finally rising.

“Would you mind if I stepped outside real quick?” Po inquired, grinning lightly. He squeezed Tigress’ hand slightly. “It’ll just be for a minute. I’m not going anywhere, I promise. I’ll even leave the door open a little bit, okay?” Po sighed lightly, his smile faltering slightly at the silence. “Okay.”

Lifting himself from the stone floor for the first time in what, according to his father had been nearly two days, Po grunted in discomfort. He let go of Tigress’ hand as he stretched his arms, seemingly reaching for the ceiling. His back ached as he stood, causing him to groan in annoyance. Looking back to the unconscious tiger, Po sighed again. Repeating that he’d be right back, Po finally built up the courage to leave the medical ward; seconds away from opening the door, Po’s ear twitched as a familiar sound was brought to his attention. He froze, too afraid to turn around. He didn’t want to get his hopes up, but that ship seemed to have already sailed.

Po slowly turned around, and the biggest wave of relief that he’d ever felt in his life washed over him as he saw Tigress beginning to stir. He rushed to her bedside, quickly taking hold of her right hand with both of his, holding her hand close to his chest. He suddenly felt tears beginning to sting his eyes, and he tried his best to hide the sudden rush of emotion from Tigress, who was trying to open her eyes.

“Po?” She muttered, trying to push herself into a sitting position within seconds of regaining consciousness. She fell back onto the bed, however, when she felt a hot, throbbing pain in her head, partnered with her muscles screaming in burning protest.

“Hold on, hold on,” Po had to keep himself from laughing out of pure joy. He placed his left hand on her upper back, assisting her in sitting upright, simultaneously letting go of her right hand.

She rested on her elbows, sighing at herself; she hated to be treated as an invalid, but she couldn’t have expected anything less from Po. Knowing him, he probably hadn’t left much during the time that she’d been unconscious; if he’d left at all. “Everything’s blurry,” She commented tiredly. She glanced around the room again, and her vision began to sharpen; the orange balls of light were candles, the brown ovals were different herb and medicine jars, and the greenness hanging from the ceiling consisted of multiple types of vines and plants.

“That’s probably normal,” Po remarked. “I’ll go get a nurse if you’re-”

“No,” Tigress suddenly grabbed Po’s right forearm with her left hand, preventing him from making any movement. “Please don’t; I need a minute.”

“Oh! Yeah, totally,” Po nodded rapidly. “Do you need anything? Are you hungry? Thirsty? You’ve got to be thirsty, right? I mean, you haven’t had anything in at least two days-”

“Po, I’m fine.” Tigress interrupted in slight exasperation, tightening her grip on his forearm slightly.

A moment of silence ensued before Po asked, “Can I hug you?” There was a hint of timidness in his voice, which Tigress found herself lightly smirking at.

When Tigress nodded, Po absentmindedly lowered himself onto the medical ward cot as Tigress found the strength to sit up; a bit of unneeded assistance from Po was thrown into the mix as well. Once Tigress appeared to have situated herself, Po wasted no time in embracing his best friend. Within seconds, his arms were around her waist and he’d buried his face into the crook of her neck, letting his head lean against hers. After a moment, her arms were being wrapped loosely around his neck, her head resting on his right shoulder. Po swallowed the lump that was growing in his throat, struggling to hold back a sob of happiness; he’d feared for the worst. He’d been dwelling on how long it’d taken him to scale the cliffside, he’d been obsessing over that fact that he could’ve brought her down a different street, and the guilt seemed to weigh heavier and heavier with each passing moment.

Hugging her closer to himself, Po inhaled deeply; almost as if he were breathing her in. He whispered, “I love you,”

The seconds of silence that ensued could qualify as the most terrifying moments of his life; he wanted so badly to take back his words. He didn’t think that it was possible to be more frightened than he was when he’d thought that Shen was going to take over China, or when he’d found Tigress in Gongmen harbor.

All of a sudden, it was almost as if someone had lit a fire of enlightenment in his mind; revealing everything that he’d ever wondered about his friendship with her, and how he really felt; the deep feelings and emotions tucked away into a corner, previously fully ignored. There was a reason why he’d been so frantic, why he was so concerned for her safety, and why he felt as if her being injured was his fault.

A deep breath from Tigress was audible, before she said quietly, “I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (This is a super long author’s note, so get ready for some more reading.)
> 
> *insert frustrated screaming here* I’m so sorry for the unsatisfactory ending, but I had no idea on how else to bring it to a close.
> 
> I know that it’s hecka cliché that Tigress just randomly woke up when it was convenient for the story, but the appropriate amount of fluff wouldn’t have been possible if not for her regaining consciousness in that moment. Also, I don’t think that the fluff could’ve been happy fluff if she’d still been unconscious; I briefly thought of making her not wake up, and I’d had the idea of Po pretty much having a mental breakdown…so…yeah. If I were going for a darker and more mature story, I definitely would’ve gone with that, but the fluff was part of the request, and I had to honor that. Also, whether those “I love you” bits are friendship-based or not is up to the reader, but I’m a TiPo shipper, so…
> 
> Fun fact; there was originally going to be a few hundred words dedicated to Li and Mr. Ping walking in on Po and Tigress hugging, thought that they were gonna kiss or something, and quickly leaving, bickering about how Mr. Ping was right and Li was wrong about Po and Tigress’ status. I took it out for two reasons; the first was because I’d probably end up adding another thousand words to the story, and I want it to remain a drabble. You know what? This story is over 2k words, we’re past the drabble stage. The second reason that I took that segment out was because I wanted the story to be less funny and more heartfelt and serious. Don’t worry, though, I have a feeling that I’ll be using that deleted segment in a later work. ;)
> 
> Another fun fact; the amount of deleted Po and Tigress scenes/concepts/ideas from the KFP3 art book genuinely surprised me. I counted at least three.
> 
> Sorry for rambling. Anyway, if you enjoyed this story, keep in mind that this was done by request and I will try my absolute best to write a work for every request that I receive (as long as this collection is still ongoing); be sure to keep it PG, though. I can’t promise that it’d be as long as this one was, but it’ll be a decent length. I also can’t promise that it’ll be done as quickly as a week, but I’ll definitely try. If you don’t have any requests, please leave a review; constructive criticism is always welcome.
> 
> I hope that you all enjoyed. Have an awesome day, everybody!

**Author's Note:**

> Requests are open! Please leave your ideas in the comments/reviews! I'd love to hear them! :D
> 
> And as always, have a great day! :D


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